Girl, 5, Is Killed When She Falls Under Wheels of Father’s Truck

A 5-year-old girl standing on the running board of her father’s truck was fatally injured in Silver Lake when he backed into another vehicle and she fell under the truck’s wheels, police said.

The father, Edgar Navarette, 27, was arrested later and booked on suspicion of vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated.

Detectives said family members told them that Navarette’s daughter, Genesis, jumped on the side running board as he was trying to park the vehicle in front of her home in the 800 block of North Benton Way about 8 p.m. Sunday.

They said Navarette hit a parked car, causing the girl to lose her footing and tumble under the wheels. When he moved forward, the vehicle crushed her.

Paramedics were summoned. They rushed her to Childrens Hospital of Los Angeles where she was pronounced dead.

Navarette was arrested later at his residence in South Gate.

Two family members interviewed Monday said Navarette was unaware that his daughter had jumped on the running board. They described him as distraught after the mishap.

“He was saying, ‘I’m going to kill myself,’ ” said Neyli Cortez, who is related to Navarette by marriage. “He tried to get into the ambulance with her, but there was no room.”

Angelica de la Torre, another family member, described Navarette as a devoted father who visited Genesis, his only child, every weekend. Detectives said the girl’s parents are separated.

“He loved Genesis like crazy,” said De la Torre.

Navarette, who works at a fast-food restaurant near Los Angeles International Airport, is being held at Parker Center jail pending a court appearance Wednesday in Los Angeles Municipal Court.